The present invention generally relates to a surveillance system, and more particularly to a personal surveillance system with audio, video, and locating capabilities.
Military, paramilitary, and even civilian individuals often enter hazardous environments. Whether the dangers of the environment are caused by battle, emergency, fire, unpredictable and/or dangerous people, etc., it is advantageous to allow a remote third party to monitor the environment and people encountered by an individual. In particular, it may be helpful to have a remote third party witness a traffic stop, an arrest, a military encounter, an assault, or other encounter to ensure safety and/or to verify an individual""s account of the encounter.
As such, conventional surveillance systems have developed to perceive and capture audio and video files of the encountered circumstances and environment. Such systems may record the audio and video files collected to a storage device for later viewing and listening. Other systems additionally or alternatively transmit the collected files to a relatively remote monitor. The monitor may simply view and listen to the information to ascertain the true danger of the environment. The monitor may additionally be equipped to communicate information back to the individual, particularly when the surveillance system is configured to be worn on the individual""s person.
Typically, the monitor is equipped to provide or send additional aid to an individual if it is ascertained that the environment or circumstances surrounding the individual so require. However, in order to send aid to an individual, the location of that individual must first be ascertained. In some instances, such as in a planned cooperative sting or mission, the location of the individual is known by the monitor prior to introduction of the individual to the hazardous environment. In other cases, the individual""s location may be determined by the audio and video files recorded and/or transmitted. However, oftentimes audio and video files are insufficient to allow the monitor to determine the precise or even the approximate location of the individual, thereby, leaving the monitor without the means to send aid to the individual in an increasingly hazardous or even perilous environment or situation. Therefore, there is need for an improved surveillance system which can be employed by a monitor and/or third party to more easily ascertain the location of an individual in a hazardous environment in a wide variety of situations.
One aspect of the present invention provides a personal surveillance system configured to be worn by an individual. The personal surveillance system includes a communication system configured to record communication files, a locating system configured to determine a location of the personal surveillance system, and a transmitter configured to send the communication files and the location of the personal surveillance system to a remote monitoring station. The locating system includes a satellite system interface configured to determine the location of the personal surveillance system and an alternate positioning system configured to determine the location of the personal surveillance system in at least one situation where the satellite system interface cannot determine the location of the personal surveillance system.
Another aspect of the present invention provides a surveillance and monitoring system including a personal surveillance system and a remote monitoring system. The personal surveillance system includes a communication system configured to record communication files, a locating system configured to determine the location of the personal surveillance system, and a transmitter configured to send the communication files and the location of the personal surveillance system. The locating system includes a satellite system interface and an alternate positioning system. The satellite system interface is configured to determine the location of the personal surveillance system. The alternate positioning system is configured to determine the location of the personal surveillance system in at least one situation where the satellite system interface cannot determine the location of the personal surveillance system. The remote monitoring station is configured to receive and review the communication files and the location transmitted from the personal surveillance system.
Yet, another aspect of the present invention provides a method of surveillance including collecting communication files with a personal surveillance system, determining a location of the personal surveillance system, and sending the communication files and the determined location from the personal surveillance system to a remote monitoring station. Determining the location of the personal surveillance system includes determining the location of the personal surveillance system with a satellite system interface if the satellite system interface can determine the location of the persona surveillance system and determining the location of the personal surveillance system with an alternate positioning system if the satellite system interface cannot determine the location of the personal surveillance system.